Five years ago I got an email telling me that Elon Musk had purchased a print of my work (s/o @eyesonwalls ) for his school Ad Astra run by Joshua Dahn. They gave me total creative freedom to paint any wall I wanted at SpaceX HQ, which was kind of scary⊠I spent a lonely week (with Layla) painting while my dad was in the hospital, fighting âthe bear called Parkinsonâsâ. My partner at the time came to take pictures of me, because I foolishly underbid my contract and didnât have enough to pay a photographerâs rate. Truth be told, I am not a shrewd businessman - or painter for that matter. I did meet some amazing kids at the school though, and even witnessed Kanye trying to get his daughter admission, but the school was only available to employees during its initial run. It was made very clear to me a few times that no one gets special treatment or favors from Elon. Although, looking back, I kind of was. My understanding is there were no grades, an emphasis on creative thinking and seemed like the kind of school that I (a high school dropout with spray painted Yeezys) would have not dropped out of. There was a particularly inviting and friendly power in that place, something I have never really felt since. I am grateful to Josh, Elon, Katrina, and Tom. And the security guard who let me play David Bowie and Kid Cudi really loud at 3am.
I return to you now at the turn of the tide, as 2025 - the last great year of my 30s - must be cast into the fiery chasm from whence it came; unto the very fires of middle agedness. You have my sword. đ
Hades 2 is out tonight and to celebrate here is my portrait of someone I really hope we get to see again in the sequel. If you havenât played either of these games by @supergiantgames please do yourself a favor!
âZagreus, God of Bloodâ, 2025
#hades #zagreus #hadesgame
âI have a part of you with me. You put your disease in me. It helps me. It makes me strong.â â Dorothy Vallens
âSomewhat Damagedâ, 2025
#bluevelvet #davidlynch #isabellarosellini
31 years ago my step dad snuck me into the premiere of âNatural Born Killersâ so 8 year old me could ask for an autograph. It was the scariest moment of my life. Last night, I saw Nine Inch Nails for the 4th time (once for each soon-to-be decade of my life, thank you @gilberttrejo38 ) and it occurred to me that itâs almost not possible to be a fan for longer than I have. At 3 years old I heard âDown In Itâ (Halo One) on the radio in my momâs car. I then listened to that song on cassette every night before bed, until a month later, in October 1989, she bought me the CD of âPretty Hate Machineâ the week it released. In 1993, Iâm pretty sure I stole a copy of âBrokenâ from Tower Records. That copy was later signed by Trent Reznor and Oliver Stone, who were probably baffled by a horribly nervous kid asking for their autograph at an event that I was definitely not old enough to attend. Iâll never forget Trentâs bodyguard asking me how to spell the name âAlexâ.
I did end up seeing the movie many years later with my sister. If you know me - and werenât already a fan yourself - NIN is likely something Iâve tried to impart with you. I still canât explain why; I wasnât able to really grasp the themes and lyrics at my early age, of course, but I felt the urgency, newness and boldness of it. Not to mention the intense anger, which was very marketable at the time. Nine Inch Nails was my first real exposure to music, art and design (I wonât even go into iD software and David Lynch) and Iâm just glad I was born into a family that was crazy enough to let a 3 year old go down that rabbit hole. I truly would be a very different person today without it. Itâs just in my DNA.
This is how I smile knowing weâre on a poorly curated social buffet line where people live one bite at a time, and that almost none of you will text back, share, reciprocate, realize that goal, send that thoughtful message, or truly appreciate the harrowing struggle it is to do anything worthwhile in this cruel beautiful place with our impossibly limited time together, knowing the weight of that effort is yours to make for the sake of this world, that all of your gifts and problems are thousands of years old and have already been forgotten, solved and discovered all over again by a few nameless heroes in a ruinous cycle of god and war, and as a result our lives will continue to drift away fading from each other with any meager humorous attempts we make at a fleeting connection in this life that only hint at the truth inside us, ignoring that it will never amount to anything remotely healthy, satisfying or meaningful until you finally learn to honestly surrender a dance with the light inside you fully unto the darkness. And for the love of God, all that is holy and sacred, I really, really hope you do. Amen.
#nacholibre #getthatcornoutofmyface
